Invst LLC Trims Stake in Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE)

Invst LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Nucor Co. (NYSE:NUE) by 72.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,586 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,109 shares during the period. Invst LLC’s holdings in Nucor were worth $317,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Nucor during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 94.2% in the first quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Nucor in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Nucor by 208.0% in the first quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 154 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nucor

In other news, EVP Daniel R. Needham sold 8,624 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $1,379,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 99,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,847,840. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NUE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Nucor from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Nucor from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Nucor in a research report on Monday, May 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Nucor from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $191.29.

Nucor Price Performance

NUE stock traded down $4.73 during trading on Friday, hitting $151.05. 2,176,026 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,597,931. Nucor Co. has a 52 week low of $140.07 and a 52 week high of $203.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 2.93. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89 and a beta of 1.57.

Nucor (NYSE:NUE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.37. Nucor had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 15.69%. The business had revenue of $8.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.81 earnings per share. Nucor’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Nucor Co. will post 10.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nucor Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. Nucor’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.71%.

Nucor Profile

Nucor Corporation engages in manufacture and sale of steel and steel products. It operates in three segments: steel mills, steel products, and raw materials. The Steel Mills segment produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and galvanized sheet steel products; plate steel products; wide-flange beams, beam blanks, and H-piling and sheet piling structural steel products; bar steel products, such as blooms, billets, concrete reinforcing and merchant bars, and engineered special bar quality products; and engages in the steel trading and rebar distribution businesses.